My Prince
by phfatbeatrice
Summary: Both Yukiko and Chie are struggling with mental disorders. How will the two cope with each other? Will they be able to deal with the other, or will their long held relationship fall apart?
1. Chapter 1

**Hello, dear reader.**

**Before you even begin chapter one, I must say that this story is something that I started more then a year ago, to cope with problems that I was facing. I cannot guarantee that it will be continued, but I know I have more 10,000 words typed for this story, so far, so there will be at least 6 more chapters, before it dies for a while. Beyond that, this story touches down on pretty taboo subjects such as self injury, Anorexia, Bulimia, bullying, self hate, and a very small bit of LGBT. If you don't want to read about any of this, please close this tab now, because I don't want to see flames for something that I wrote as a cope. If you do, however, like this kind of story, then I welcome you. I'm not the best writer, but this is mostly written during times where I wasn't fully caring about how I wrote. I apologise for any spelling or grammatical errors, and if you notice any, please PM me and I will attempt to fix them. Enjoy!**

**~Bri**

* * *

Loud chattering and dishes clanking was all that was to be heard of this small inn. It was one of the busy days when the manager's daughter had to stay home from school, just to help out at the inn. Her name was Amagi Yukiko. This teen worked constantly, hardly having time for anything such as school or friends.

She whipped around a few drunkards, serving new glasses of wine and beer to the already intoxicated guests. She would smile kindly and offer, "Would like some more to drink, Sir?"

She kept the fake smile plastered onto her face, until he came back at her with "I'd like to have more of you." Her face went blank, but than she bit own tongue before she said something stupid. She glued the fake smile back and nodded at him, "I'm sorry, but I'm not allowed to properly respond to that." she said politely, despite the fact that her jaw was tensing. She sat a full glass of beer down and took up the empty one. She walked away without another word.

She disregarded as he called after her. She began around the large party table, collecting plates, bowls, and silverware. She stormed out of the room, into the kitchen. She put the dishes into the sink and turned to the cook, "Father, may I take my break now?" She asked, trying to hide the fact that she was clearly upset.

Her father turned from the stove for only a moment, "Yes, just remember: 15 minutes. We're too busy for you to forget the time because you were talking to Chie."

Yukiko bowed her head, "Yes father." she bit her tongue again. She had lost track of time once a few months ago, and her father was not going to allow her to forget it.

She let herself relax a little as she went back to her bedroom. She picked up her phone, to see if she had any new messages. Chie. Chie. Chie. Chie. She had 3 texts and a missed phone call. All from Chie. What could Chie possibly need. She read the texts, "Hey Yukiko, just wanting to make sure you're okay. I know it's busy season at the Inn, but I worry ya know." "Heyya Yukiko, call me when you can, k?" "Hey Yukiko, later I'm gonna bring the assignment for today. See ya then."

Yukiko let out a sigh. Chie was always like this. She watched over her and made sure nothing went wrong in Yukiko's life. Yukiko loved her, but Chie was so overprotective.

At the same time, though, Chie is missing a detail everyone has missed for a while. Ever since the busy season at the Inn started in October, Yukiko hadn't been eating. She would eat little things like toast or some rice, but nothing difficult. No one has noticed either and that is probably what hurt Yukiko the most. Not even her closest friend realised when she was lying about eating breakfast.

Yukiko closed her phone and put it back on the side table. There was no way she was going to make it to school today. Maybe tomorrow. Yukiko sucked in a sharp breath and started back to the front.

* * *

A little while later, after mostly everyone had gone to their rooms and the party room was practically empty, Yukiko had gotten permission to take the night off. She had let out a sigh in relief and removed the apron she was wearing.

Yukiko started back to her bedroom once more, this time feeling a sense of bliss. She loved when she first got off work, because that first few minutes off her feet always made her feel so much better about the day she had faced. When she sat down on her bed, she looked over to see her phone flashing. She picked it up and observed the message, "Hey, Yukiko. Just wanted to tell you that I'll be over soon with that work I'd said I would bring. Sorry it's so late. Hanamura dragged me and Narukami to Junes for a while. See ya!" From Chie, of course.

Yukiko set her phone back down. She felt rather weak after today's work. It was probably nothing, though. There were always those extra tiring days that just took everything out of Yukiko. This was probably just one of those days.

She laid down and took in a deep breath. Everything felt better for that one moment. She closed her eyes and took in a sharp breath. Exhaustion almost immediately took over her.

Almost as if on cue, a light pecking suddenly sounded at Yukiko's door. "Are you up? I brought today's assignments to you." the voice was Chie. At least she didn't barge in like normal.

"I'm up, please come on in." Yukiko said, sitting up. The dizziness once again surrounded her for a moment, making her want to vomit. She bit her lip and roughed through the only few seconds of vertigo.

When Chie came in, her first comment was, "Yukiko, you don't look so hot. You feeling okay?"

Yukiko took a moment to regain composure before saying, "I'm fine." she was lying through her teeth. "I just worked to hard today."

Chie frowned, "You should tell your parents if you really feel ill. It's bad to push yourself too much."

"No, they need me to help. I'll be fine, I promise." Yukiko said, feeling a little more confident in that statement when her vertigo went away. She looked up at Chie and gave her a smile, "Really, don't worry. I'll see if I can go to school tomorrow in the morning, okay? I'll tell you if I can't." Yukiko said, the lie of how she felt written on her face.

Chie was unconvinced, but she nodded a little. "Okay. Well, I better get going. I'll text you later." she smiled one of her big dorky smiled, making Yukiko stiffen a giggle.

"Okay, be careful on your walk home." Yukiko said, suddenly feeling much better than she had before.

Chie grinned, "Like anyone can get by with trying to hurt me. I'll kick them as hard as I can." Chie said, power flashing across her face for only a moment, "Well, tomorrow then." she said before leaving the hallway, waving at Yukiko the whole time.

Yukiko, once Chie was out of sight, let out a heavy sigh and slouched a little. She loved Chie so much. If only Chie lived here at the Inn with her. Everything would be easier. Especially since Yukiko never could properly think for herself. After a few more moments of her thinking things like this, she bit her lip and shook her head. Why was she allowing those longing feelings for Chie take over again? It wasn't going to change that Chie was not like that and that Yukiko would somehow always be the lone princess.

Tears welled up in Yukiko's eyes when she though of that, even though she knew she couldn't rely on Chie forever. She blinked a few times, trying to lock the emotion away. She was much too emotional.

Yukiko laid back down, letting a steady stream of tears make their way to the pillow. She knew that she shouldn't get so upset over the fact that Chie could never properly save her; but at the way things were going, she felt there was no way anyone can save her.

She silently cried herself to sleep, the emotions of loneliness welling up and consuming her. She couldn't really understand her feelings properly, and lack of sleep wasn't helping.


	2. Chapter 2

Yukiko woke with a slow start, her mind not where she wanted it to be. She got up and tried to ignore the fact that her hair was going in every direction. The first thing thing she reminded herself of was that she needed to ask her parents if she was even going to be going to school today.

She carefully tugged down the hall to her parents' room She knocked once, only to hear her mother, "Go to school today." Yukiko couldn't help but half smile to herself. She could tell by the way that her mother had said that that she was not fully awake herself. She started back to her own room, trying to remember where she had left her uniform.

After she fully recalled the location of all of her school things, she began getting ready. She fully unclothed herself and caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror, making her compelled to double check. She blinked a few times, her common sense once again trying to remind her that her mind was lying to her. Her reflection in her eyes, still had those little love handles that always drove her crazy, wide thighs to fit equally wide hips, a small bit of fat on her belly. But the rational part of her mind was pointing out the fact that her ribs were poking out, her hip bones looked like they might break through skin any second, and her fingers were a hue of blue. But, like every time she looked into the mirror, the eating disorder won.

Yukiko sighed, breaking her vision from the mirror, before sliding the soft material of her uniform over her shoulders. She buttoned up the blouse slowly before putting on a pair of black tights on, under her skirt. She finished putting the uniform on before putting her red knitted sweater on over that. Recently, the weather had been much colder then what the forecast had been saying, or at least to her it had. She calmed her long black hair, and finished that off with her usual red hair band. All she could think, though, was how her uniform made her look so big.

Yukiko power walked to school, lost in thought most of the way there. Her face lit up when her eyes landed on a familiar face. Chie was standing there, looking preoccupied by something. Chie was always there, almost like a prince. No matter what trouble Yukiko was in, even if it was trouble Chie didn't know about, she somehow always helped.

Yukiko ran up to Chie, "Good Morning." she said, her voice smoothly running out of her mouth. She felt odd today, like her body was too heavy for her head but also too light? It was a difficult feeling to describe. She bit her lip and wrote the feeling off.

"'Morning. You feeling better? Yesterday you looked horrible." Chie said, her brow furrowing.

"Much better. It was probably just exhaustion. I told you it was nothing to worry about." Yukiko said, brushing her dark hair away from her face.

Chie started walking toward the school building, "Yeah, but I'm your best friend. I have to worry." she said, turning to face Yukiko, who still hadn't moved.

Yukiko shook her head a little, her face turning that pale whitish yellow colour again. She took a few sharp breaths in. "I'm fine." she said, pushing herself forward toward the school. She walked fast, as if hiding the fact that she looked like she could collapse on the floor right then and there. "Come on, Chie. Don't want to be late, right?" Yukiko called, her voice sounding hollow.

Chie's eyebrows raised and she rushed over to Yukiko. "Nonono, you come here. Are you not telling me something? There's no way you are feeling okay, Yukiko. Have you eaten today? Have you eaten at all since I saw you last night?"

Yukiko looked down, hiding her face behind her long hair. "No." she said, quietly.

Chie sighed, "Yukiko..." she pulled out her lunch, and begin unwrapping it.

Yukiko's eyes went wide and she shook her head, "It's okay, I'll eat during lunch. I don't want to take your bento."

Chie looked up at her, "No, you are eating some." Chie said, forcing the bento box into Yukiko's hands. "Just eat a side dish."

Yukiko let out a sigh. She knew she couldn't get away from this. She studied the food for a moment, trying to decide which one had the lowest calorie count. After a few seconds, she took the chopsticks Chie was offering her. She slowly started eating the vegetables carefully, mainly eating the pickled celery. Yukiko had always loved the way Chie's mum made pickled celery.

After finishing the side dish, Chie took the bento box. "Feel better?" she asked, looking dead into Yukiko's eyes.

Yukiko let a small smile paint it's self on her face. "I feel much better now. Maybe all I needed was to eat." she said, lying through her teeth. Her head still felt odd, her body still much to heavy in every sense of the word.

She grinned at Chie until she saw satisfaction flash across her friend's face. She knew that if Chie looked content, then she must as well. She felt a little sick inside knowing that even Chie was falling for a façade.

* * *

About thirty minutes after the first class ended and the second had started, Yukiko raised her hand, silently waiting to be called upon. "Yes, Amagi-san?" the teacher said, her eyebrow raised a little.

"May I go to the restroom?" Yukiko asked, attempting to hide the fact the her voice faltered slightly.

"Yes you may." the teacher dismissed her.

Yukiko quietly got up and escorted herself away from the classroom. Her stomach was aching slightly, like always. Though her mind could remember, she had eaten this morning. It was wrong. It felt wrong, sickening almost. Yukiko let out a sigh in frustration. Something must really be wrong in her head. People eat all the time. Why couldn't she? Because she had to be beautiful. But Chie had told her that she was beautiful. But that was just Chie. Chie would complement her all the time, being called beautiful was just another sugarcoated lie to get Yukiko to like herself.

Yukiko knocked herself out of her thoughts when she reached the girl's bathroom. She checked all of the stalls, making sure no one else would hear what she was about to do. She hid away in the last stall from the door and let out a sigh. She used a small red hair band to pull her hair behind her so it wouldn't get in the way. She hated doing this, but she hated the feeling of food even more.

Yukiko brushed her bangs away, or at least what she could, before leaning over the toilet. She let out a sigh, before sticking her middle finger far back into her mouth. She coughed violently, arching her back. Yukiko pushed through it and stuck her fingers deep into her throat again. This time, she heaved and gagged. Even though she was in such a weak state, she couldn't help but smile. Just once more and the food should come out.

Yukiko took in a breath and pushed her fingers into her mouth again. This time she coughed harshly, before throwing up the little she had had to eat that day. She coughed a while longer, suffocating on her own breath.

Yukiko felt proud of herself. At the same time though, that had weakened her greatly. Now she felt extremely dizzy and disoriented. She pushed herself though. She flushed her regret down the toilet and left the stall to wash her pale face. She was sure some cold water would shake this sudden exhaustion.

On the walk to the sink though, her mind suddenly blanked. She fell into the ground and when she tried to get up, she couldn't. She felt fear run up her spine. She felt she couldn't move, almost like gravity was pulling her small body too much. After a moment, she blacked out.

* * *

**Dear Readers, **

**I have to say this at the end of pretty much any chapter, please do not try any of this. Eating disorders are very risky and dangerous. Lots of things can go wrong and it's just too risky to chance. If you need anyone to talk to, you may PM me at any time. Please stay strong!**

**With love and hugs and stuff~  
~Bri**


	3. Chapter 3

After about 20 minutes after Yukiko got up to go the the restroom, Chie's hand shot into the air. She didn't even wait to be called on, "Can I go check on Yukiko? She's been in there quite some bit."

The teacher's brows raised. "Fine. Please don't interrupt the class again." she said, her voice showing her irritation.

Chie shot up from her desk and bowed to the teacher, "Sorry." she said, before rushing out of the classroom. Chie was worried about Yukiko already, then when she didn't come back from the bathroom, her worry just engulfed her.

Chie had always worried a lot about Yukiko, always tried to her best to give Yukiko the best love, attention, hope. She wanted Yukiko to succeed, even if she had to sacrifice herself and her life to allow Yukiko to live.

Chie ran into the 2nd years' girls bathroom and was immediately shocked by what she saw. Yukiko was on the floor, not conscious. "Yukiko!" was the only thing she could muster.

Chie got on her knees near Yukiko, rolling her over off of her stomach. Yukiko looked peaceful, but Chie knew better. She put her fingers to Yukiko's neck, trying for a pulse. She let out a relieved sigh when she felt a small, light patter.

Chie pulled out her phone and dialed Yosuke's number, she didn't care if he was in class or not. Of course he wouldn't answer though. She quickly started a text, "Get help, Yukiko needs help ASAP." she sent it and hoped Yosuke would text in class like he did sometimes.

After a few excruciating seconds that felt like hours to Chie, her phone lit up. She opened the text, "I'll get the nurse. On my way." Chie was relieved.

She kept one hand wrapped in Yukiko's, the other constantly watching her pulse. Chie's heart was beating out of chest and she felt so scared she could cry. But she bit her tongue and pretended like she wasn't fearing for her friend's life.

After what felt like forever to Chie, Yosuke rushed into the bathroom. Any other day, she would've kicked his ass for being in the girl's bathroom. But today, Yukiko was in danger and her worried friends needed to be with her.

Right behind Yosuke was the school nurse. She immediately did what Chie had already done, before checking her temperature. After a moment, the thermometer went off and the nurse took a glanced. "Satonaka, call emergency." the nurse said, her words sounding level.

Chie nodded, her hands shaking as she retrieved her cell phone. She dialed emergency quickly and put the phone to her ear. After a few seconds, a voice picked up the phone, "Emergency, where's your location?" the girl asked, her voice showing signs of her hating her job.

"Yasogami High School." Chie said, struggling not to freak out any farther than she already was.

"What's your emergency?" the girl on the line, obviously following protocol.

"My friend... She's passed out in the restroom. She's still alive. We don't know what's wrong..." Chie bit her lip to prevent her teasing tears to escape her eyes.

"Okay, ma'am. I've dispatched someone to come help. Now I have to ask a few questions. Do you know if there had been anything particularly stressful in her life?"

Chie was caught off guard by the sudden question. "Well, yeah. She's been working at the inn a lot more recently." Chie said, being as truthful as possible.

"Alright. Do you know if she's been eating?"

Chie's voice got caught in her throat. This morning, she practically had to shove food down Yukiko's throat. Now that she really thought about it, Yukiko hadn't been eating all that much. "Not a whole lot. She eats small meals."

"Has she eaten today?"

Chie nodded into the phone, "Yes. She had some of my bento this morning."

"how much did she eat?" the lady asked.

"A side dish's worth..." Chie said, beginning to sound worried. Maybe Yukiko was suffering from exhaustion and the stress from work made her not want food. Chie knew that she never felt like eating if something particularly stressful was happening. Maybe that was the case with Yukiko. Chie shook her head, deciding that she was thinking too much.

"Okay. Now stay on the line with me and tell me if anything changes. Mainly with heart rhythm, breathing, response, any uncontrollable twitching, anything."

Chie nodded into the phone even the operator couldn't see her. All she could think about was if Yukiko was going to be okay. She should've paid closer attention, should've noticed that she had been more exhausted than normal. But Chie had been so absorbed in herself.

She got lost in her thoughts, until the EMTs arrived. The strong men picked up Yukiko and put her on the stretcher, making Chie cringe. Yukiko never liked men because of the way that they always came onto her like pigs. So Chie knew she would've much preferred Chie had lifted her onto the stretcher. But Chie couldn't change that.

Chie followed them down the hall, the ramp, and out the door. Yukiko's peaceful looking face was put into the sterile white ambulance and they began starting her on an IV drip. Just as they were about to close the doors to the ambulance, Chie stopped them. She didn't understand her reaction at first, but then decided, "May I ride with her...? I'm her best friend." Chie asked, her heart beating through her chest.

"Okay, you may." the EMT said, rushing to the front of the vehicle while his partner hopped in the back next to Yukiko. Chie looked at the nurse, "Can you write me a note for the day, sensei?" she asked.

"I will, Satonaka. Go on, be with Amagi-San." the nurse said, waving her away. The EMT shut the door and soon they were on their way to the hospital.

* * *

**Hello, readers!**

**I'm sorry for leaving it on a cliffhanger. It's really hard to organise chapters out of a story that was originally a whole. Also, as if this isn't obvious enough, please do not try anything that you read in this story. It's all a risk to your health. If you are suffering from a mental illness or an eating disorder, I'm always available to talk, just message me. I guarantee a response within 24 hours. **

**~Bri**


	4. Chapter 4

Yukiko groaned in her sleep, trying to realise why her bed suddenly got more uncomfortable. She used her hand to poke around, feeling of the mattress. She soon gave up on trying to figure out from the feel and opened her eyes. Before she could even become fully aware of where she was, her mother had wrapped her arms tightly around the small frame of her daughter, "Oh, Yuki-Chan, I was so worried." her mother gripped her tightly. After a minute, everything clicked. This room she was in was a hospital room.

Yukiko tried to remember what could've put her in the hospital. Her mind couldn't recall anything passed being in the bathroom. "Oh, Yukiko..." her mother mumbled, still hugging her tightly.

Yukiko opened her mouth to ask her mum about why she was here, but choked at the sudden feeling of something down her throat. Her eyes went wide for a moment as she tried to talk again, but gagged on the same obstruction.

Yukiko's mother pulled away from her daughter, before pulling her chin up to face her, "It's a feeding tube." her mother said, a subtle hint of emotion in her voice as she informed Yukiko as to why she couldn't talk.

Yukiko's eyes went wide, as her memory flooded in. She had eaten some of Chie's lunch and had puked it out after not too long. She remembered falling on the floor, then waking here. She must be here for what she has been doing. Hopefully they didn't know. Hopefully they blew it off as exhaustion.

Her mother petted her head for a moment, "Yuki-Chan... If you are ever too stressed, just talk to me or your father... We'll hire part timers if that's what it takes." her mother said, before wrapping her in another hug. "I'll go tell the nurses you're awake. Chie should be here soon, school is nearly over. I'll leave for now... I still need to work." Yukiko's mother, halfway through talking to Yukiko, had started mumbling to herself. Though Yukiko was used to it, her mother did that more than often.

Her mother had somehow gotten to the other side of the room already. She waved as she left. Not even a few minutes after she left, a nurse came into the room. "Hello, Yukiko-San. How are you feeling?" she asked.

Yukiko wanted to tell her she didn't fancy the tube down her throat, but that wouldn't work, so she simply nodded.

The nurse came up near her and got close to her, "Lay down for one moment, try to relax your throat." the nurse instructed. Yukiko did just as she was told, knowing the nurse was going for the tube.

When the nurse pulled it out, Yukiko started coughing. For a moment, she thought she might throw up, but it soon cleared. "Do you know why you are here?" the nurse asked, an eyebrow raised.

Yukiko cleared her throat, before speaking hoarsely, "Exhaustion?" she asked, a small laugh escaping her.

The nurse nodded. "That's what we've been telling everyone. We have discovered that girls like you get worse if we tell people." the nurse nodded a little.

"Girls like me?" Yukiko asked, her heart racing uncomfortably out of her chest.

"Anorexics, Bulimics, self injurers. We get quite a few. More than a handful just from your high school." the nurse said it in a low voice, as if to hide it from any peeping ears.

Yukiko was stabbed sharply by those words. She had never been called any of those words by anyone other than herself. It was foreign and very frightening. She had starved herself, thrown up what she did eat and hit herself if she didn't. She had bruises all over her legs, arms, shoulders, shins. She hit anywhere their uniform would hide the nasty bruise that developed afterwards.

"How did you know?" Yukiko asked, her voice painfully hoarse.

"Scratched, reddened middle finger, slightly decaying teeth, abnormally underweight, malnutrition, dehydration, bruises in spots that aren't normal for ditsy dings here and there, in clustered areas and amounts, ulcers, everything. You've been at this a while." the nurse said, looking at the chart.

"I started for the fourth time in October. It's been a rather constant pattern for years now. No one ever noticed... But it had never gotten this bad before." Yukiko said, as she put her hand to her mouth, chewing on her already short finger nails.

The nurse's eyebrow raised slightly, "When did you start?" she asked, her voice still low.

Yukiko thought for a moment. It felt very odd to her to say this kind of thing out loud. "Uhh... Well... A few years... Probably... 4 years ago? I started on my 13th birthday..." Yukiko trailed off after that.

The nurse looked curiously at her, "Oh my, that young?" she said, surprised. She had never heard of anyone under 15. "What caused you to start, if I may ask?"

Yukiko looked down, thinking about it herself. "Well, I was bullied when I was younger, before my friend Chie came around... I was shoved around, called fat, ugly, idiot, any word in the book... Then Chie showed up and saved me," Yukiko's face lit up a little. "But I knew I couldn't rely on Chie for everything. So, I started shutting down. I tried not to talk to her anymore, I ignored her calls, I tried to live without her. But the bullying started again, worse this time. I got abused. I got beaten by the other kids. They took my lunch, telling me I didn't need to eat, that I was fat. One day, they were giving me the normal beating, throwing their left over bentos at me, telling me to eat what was on the ground... Chie saw what was happening, and kicking them all around until they left... But, it was too late by then... I believed I was fat at that point. I saw nothing but an obese girl when I looked at myself. I felt like I was disgusting." Yukiko hadn't even realised she had talked so much until she stopped. "Oh, I'm sorry for telling my life story..." she said, feeling as though she was rambling rudely.

"No no, I am fine. I have no problems listening. Besides, it seems like you need someone to listen to you." she said, giving Yukiko a soft grin.

"But-" she was going to argue again, but the nurse cut her off, "Just keep telling me your story." the nurse said, trying to give her the slight confidence she needed.

Yukiko was silent for a moment, "Okay..." she said, her voice quivering a little. "On my 13th birthday, my mother had gotten a decent sized cake for all of my friends and I. Well, the first thing I could think of was the fact that cake was fattening, I was already fat, it would just make it worse. But I knew I couldn't hide from it. So, my mother gave us cake, I ate fast and ate as much as my mother gave me, which was 3 or 4 pieces of cake. Afterwards, I felt an upset stomach. I ran into the bathroom... And... The first time, I was simply not feel well... But than I noticed... I was getting rid of the sweet, fattening cake. After the first time I... You know... Then I forced myself to... Umm... And, after that, I've done that every time I've eaten, practically. But I also learned the wonders of restricting as well... I lost about 30 pounds in the first few weeks... I felt great. But I realised it was normal... So I decided to stop... I did, for a few months... But I relapsed. I've relapsed 4 times now... This time has been the worst relapse... I started again in October, it's January... I've only eaten about 2000 calories a week, if I don't count the... Umm... Yeah... "

The nurse looked at Yukiko carefully. "So, bullying did this to you?" she asked softly.

"Yes... That and having to work a lot since I started high school... My family always need me to help out at the inn, so me and Chie never have time to just be teenagers, you know?" Yukiko started biting her nails again.

The nurse nodded, "Doesn't your family run the Amagi inn? I thought I recognised your family name."

"Yes.. We all run it. It's very stressful though... Sometimes I wish something would happen and we would have to close it, but I'm sure that won't happen any time soon." Yukiko said, letting out a sigh after her words. She really had wished it. She would pray for hours when she couldn't sleep that something happened to the Inn, making them have to shut it down.

The nurse looked at her sympathetically. "I'm sorry this all happened to you." she said, with pity in her voice. She let out a sigh and looked up at the clock, "I have to go check on another patient, so I must leave you. But school should be over, so your friend should be here soon."

"Oh you mean Chie?" Yukiko asked, her face immediately brightening up.

The nurse nodded, "Yes. She was here all of yesterday, until about 9 last night. She seems to really care about you." the nurse smiled, "Well, I'll be leaving." she disappeared through the door, leaving Yukiko all alone again.

That last sentence played over again in her head, '_She seems to really care about you._' Yukiko couldn't help a smile. But soon, her mind turned for the worst. '_If she cared about me, she would've noticed something wrong a long time ago. She would never have let me starve, if she knew I was doing it to myself._' Yukiko thought, as her eyes studied her hands.

She bit her lip, trying to ignore herself, '_But Chie has been trying. She always fights for me, defends me, protects me. She is my brick wall._' she thought, trying to overlap the hatred that welled up inside of her.

'_But she didn't see anything wrong with me. She only protected me from other people, not myself._' she argued with herself. After a moment or two, she closed her eyes and shook her head. "I love Chie. Nothing will change that." she said out loud as reassurance.

Yukiko closed her eyes and tried to clear things out of her head. That evil voice in her head had calmed a little and her heartbeat relaxed a little. She hated how her mind worked. She wanted everything to be different then it was and it caused bitter emotions to well up inside her and consume her. That was part of the reason it was so easy for her to just forget about food. She was too busy thinking about other things.

* * *

**Dear readers, **

**If you are being bullied, please don't be afraid to speak up. Bullying is a serious matter that you shouldn't be afraid of talking to an authority figure about it. Please speak up about any bullying, even if it's something as minor as someone stealing your pencil. If you don't like it, don't let it happen, okay?**

**~Bri**


	5. Chapter 5

Yukiko was almost asleep when she her a knock. "Yukiko? Are you awake?" Chie's voice calling into the room.

Yukiko opened her eyes and said, "Yes, I'm awake." she readjusted herself in the bed, to where she was sitting partially up, the bed supporting her back.

Chie came into the room, still in the Yasogami uniform. Her brow was wet and she looked like she had run the whole way here. "I'm sorry for not being here sooner, teacher wouldn't let me leave any earlier."

Yukiko smiled and Chie's dorkiness, "Please don't worry about it. One of the nurses kept me company most of the time while I waited."

Chie nodded, "Well that's good. I didn't want you to be in this sad room all by yourself." Her voice sounded odd, like she was covering the real reason she showed up.

Yukiko watched Chie carefully, "Did they tell you?" she asked, her voice no louder than a whisper.

Chie immediately knew what she was talking about. "Um... Well, no, but they led me to a conclusion that I'm pretty sure is true." Chie looked sad as she said that.

Yukiko nodded a little. "Ah, I see..." her voice was calm, but depression was laced within it.

Chie looked at the floor, "Have you been starving yourself?"

Yukiko's voice got caught in her throat. She looked at her hands, which were very thin and brittle looking. "Y-yes..." she answered, her voice empty.

Chie nodded to herself, like a confirmation. "Also... Do you... Um..." Chie had difficulties wording it, because she was frightened of saying the wrong thing. "Do you force food out?" She couldn't find a better way to word it.

Yukiko bit her lip for a minute. She nodded slowly. She hated having to face this, but she knew that Chie was going to find out one way or another. She should be happy that Chie knows.

Chie moved really close to Yukiko, and embraced her. "I'm so sorry..." she tried to keep her voice stable but it didn't work all too well.

Yukiko looked up at Chie, "Why are you sorry? I'm the one at fault."

Chie shook her head, "If I had just noticed it sooner. If I had stopped you. If I had told you you are pretty more often. I'm a horrible friend for letting this happen."

Yukiko shook her head, "I hid it for a long time. I shouldn't have even started these behaviours. I should've told you. Don't blame yourself." She looked down at her hands for a moment.

Chie bit her lip to keep herself from dragging to argument out. She watched Yukiko's face for a long time before she asked, "Why?" her voice was quiet again.

Yukiko continued to study her hands while she thought about it. "I wanted to be pretty." she stated, her voice empty. She sounded so sad when she said this.

"But you are pretty... You are beautiful, Yukiko..." Chie hugged her friend close. "You know I was always jealous of your natural slimness, while I have to exercise practically all the time for the body I have. I always wanted your body type."

Yukiko shook her head, "You're lying. No one would want such an ugly, fat body." she hugged her sides as she said this.

Chie looked right at Yukiko, "I promise I'm telling you the truth." Chie held onto Yukiko tightly, trying to comfort her.

Yukiko shook her head a small bit, but didn't say anything. She was still trying to take in that Chie knew. Chie knew about the problem she was faced with. Chie knew about her.

Chie let go of Yukiko, but grabbed her cold hands, pulling them nearer to her, "Yukiko, you are my best, closest friend. I never want anything to happen to you. I would sacrifice myself for you... Please try to stop starving yourself." Chie looked up at Yukiko's hollow eyes. She wanted to just hold her forever and promise that it was all okay and things would get better.

Yukiko looked down into her lap, avoiding eye contact as much as she could. "I can try..." she said softly. After a few awkwardly silent moments, Yukiko leaned on Chie, suddenly gripping her quite tight. "I'm sorry..." she sniffed in, hiding her face in Chie's neck.

Chie put her hand on the back of Yukiko's head and petted softly, "Don't worry about it too much. Stress makes it worse right? Let's start off small... Why don't we see if the nurses will let us go to the cafeteria? I'll pay."

Yukiko moved away from Chie and frowned, "I'm not hungry." she stated, almost as if it was well practised.

Chie shook her head, "What I meant by that was; let's go to the cafeteria so I can shove food down your throat whether you like it or not." Chie said, quite sternly.

Yukiko looked a small bit intimidated, but she knew that was just Chie's personality.

Chie smiled at her and said, "Just start slow. Get a salad, and eat it with no dressing on it." she said this in a tone Yukiko had never heard before. Was she being desperate?

After even thinking that, Yukiko had to agree with Chie's idea. It wasn't that bad... Salad without dressing was only 20 calories. That's not that bad. She could deal with that.

Chie left the room for a moment to go ask the nurse of they could go. After getting the clear, Chie came back with instructions on how to take the IV to go.

Yukiko was dizzy when she first sat up off the edge of the bed, but shook it off and continued. She took in a breath as she stood up. Once on her feet, she felt a lot more comfortable.

Chie took the hand she wasn't using to move the IV, smiling at her. Chie looked so happy that Yukiko agreed to eat. It almost made Yukiko feel happier, just for making Chie happier.

As they approached the cafeteria, Yukiko got more and more worried about it. By the time they got to the door to the cafeteria, Yukiko was shaking her head, looking quite panicked. "Chie... I can't do it. I can't." Yukiko was turning even paler then she already was and she liked like she was about to fall over.

Chie grabbed Yukiko's shoulders to steady and held her close, "Yukiko... I... I don't know what it's like to have an eating disorder... I can imagine that it would be hard to get better, but it's a step by step process. I just want you and me to go into this cafeteria and I'll buy you a salad. I don't mind if you don't finish it, I won't be mad. I just want to see you eat something." Chie looked into Yukiko's eyes, trying to get through to her.

After a moment or two and Yukiko calmed down a little bit, she nodded. "Okay." she said softly.

Chie smiled at her and said, "You are a strong girl! I promise I'll help you through it."

Yukiko nodded slowly, waiting for Chie to open the door. She still looked quite unsettled, but her hesitance was a little less obvious.

Chie bit her lip, but continued into the cafeteria. She held the door for Yukiko, smiling at her. She was trying to give her friend a little bit of confidence, though it was hard.

Yukiko nodded at her a small bit, walking into the white room. There was no one else in the cafeteria, which made Yukiko a little bit more comfortable.

Chie walked up to the vending machine and nodded at it. She put in a bit of yen and waited a moment. She pulled the prepackaged salad from the vend area and handed it to Yukiko. "That should be good, right?"

Yukiko looked at the food she was holding, and nodded slowly.

Chie looked at her uncertainly, before turning back to the vending machine. She got herself two apples and a boxed juice before guiding them to the table. She started chowing down on the apple carelessly.

Yukiko watched Chie, almost as if she were learning from the way Chie ate. She opened the lid to the salad and ate it, very slowly.

After about 30 minutes, Chie had finished both of her apples and her juice box, Yukiko had only taken about four bits of the salad she had.

Yukiko was hiding her face with her hands, glaring down at the food. She definitely didn't look comfortable.

Chie leaned a little before asking, "Are you done?" she asked softly.

Yukiko didn't respond at first, but then shook her head. After another moment though, she nodded her head and pushed the plate away. "Chie... I'm the worst..." she murmured, sadness lacing her tone.

Chie shook her head in surprise. "You are not! What caused you to think that?" Chie asked, looking at her friend, watching for any sudden changes.

Yukiko kept staring down at that table and said, in a soft quiet voice, "I starve myself, and you bought me this salad and I couldn't even take five bites... What kind of friends is that? I am not worth you, Chie. You are everything I wish I was. I'm so jealous..." she said, in a hollow voice.

Chie walked around the table and hugged Yukiko's shoulders. "But Yukiko, you are the prettiest girl I know. You are amazingly smart, and way better with people then me. You are also so nice to everyone. I only dream I could be that nice."

Yukiko shook her head and out her hands get her face after a moment. "Chie... Why am I worth your time?" she asked softly. Her voice sounded so hollow and emotionless.

Chie held her tighter and shook her head. "I don't need a reason." she sat there for a moment, before letting go of Yukiko. "Let's get back to your room." she said, just knowing that that salad in front of her was hard.

Yukiko nodded slowly. She let out a quiet sigh and got up from her chair. She glanced at the salad, before taking it from the table and tossing it into the trash.

She looked exhausted and like she needed a nice nap, even though she just woke up. But she was very unhealthy, from what the doctor said. Her actual doctor had actually asked Chie to bring her her schoolwork at less for the next week, if not longer then that.

Yukiko was so lost in thought that she didn't notice when they got to her room. She was almost surprised when she realised where they were. Chie kinda shook her head a little, in that way that meant 'Oh silly Yukiko'. Yukiko smiled at her before getting on the hospital bed.

After a few moments of awkward silence, Yukiko broke the silence by asking Chie, "What does the chart say my weight is?"

Chie looked a little surprised for such a question but it was pretty much public information. She grabbed the chart without much though and read it, sounding a little shocked as the numbered slipped from her lips, "79 pounds. Yukiko..." she didn't really know what to say. Chie could probably lift Yukiko and she would feel lighter then a feather.

"79? Really?" Yukiko almost looked happy. She had a smile on her face. But it definitely wasn't a smile Chie was used to. In fact, the smile she had on her face right then scared her a little bit. "I thought I was somewhere around 90. I've not weighed myself since someone broke the scale at the inn."

Chie was still in shock. "Yukiko, I weigh 117."

Yukiko nodded a little, "But your weight looks good on you... Besides, it's probably all muscles. My weight is all fat."

Chie sudden yelled out, "Yukiko, you have no fat left! You starved it all off! You can start eating again! You are nothing but skin and bone right now!" Chie suddenly started crying. She bit her lip before continuing. "You are beautiful just the way you are, you don't need to starve to be pretty... You could die... I don't know what I would do if you died..." Chie was actually crying. She looked so sad, like everything she had been holding back the past few days was pouring out. "Yukiko, when I found you in the bathroom, I was so scared! I am surprised I even remembered how to call for help! You were just lying there... And so pale... You were cold too... I thought that I had lost you. I never want to feel like that again. So please, Yukiko... Please..." Chie had her hands covering her face and she was crying pretty hard. She sat down in one of the chairs near the bed and basically just curled into a ball.

Yukiko wasn't sure what to say. She never thought of how her eating issues caused others problems. she had also never seen Chie this upset-this bare-before. Chie was the strong one, Chie was the one that never cried, Chie never broke down. Chie was a brick wall. But the brick wall had to fall eventually.

After a few minutes of silence, quiet sobs and hiccuping, Yukiko finally said, "I'll try... I'll try to eat normally."

Chie nodded a little bit, but she was obviously quite upset. She took in a few deep breast before saying, "Yukiko, I want to be your prince... But you need a better, more attentive prince. I never noticed... I mean. I noticed a skipped meal here and there, but I thought it was due to small reasons and it wasn't anything to worry over... But I never noticed you getting smaller and smaller, sicker and sicker. What prince can't save the one and only person they were supposed to protect." Chie wasn't looking at Yukiko as she said this.

Yukiko was shaking her head slowly, "You are still my prince. I'm the one that hid it from you. I didn't want to be saved. I made sure you couldn't find out." she said, sounding a little empty.

"I'm... Just sorry... Maybe if I had caught it earlier and you would be healthy... " Chie watched the ground closely.

Yukiko let out a sigh but didn't try to explain it any farther. She knew that Chie just wouldn't understand. There is no way Chie could just understand her entire impression of food when Chie loved to eat.

Chie watched Yukiko's face for a short while before she started humming quietly. She wasn't really meaning anything by it, but Yukiko closed her eyes and listened intensely.

After about ten minutes of Chie's humming, Yukiko was deeply asleep. Chie smiled when she realised that Yukiko was fast asleep. She stopped humming and let out a sigh. She forced herself out of her chair and grabbed her bag.


	6. Chapter 6

**Severe trigger warning for this next chapter.**

* * *

She crept out of the room slowly, making sure that she wouldn't wake Yukiko up. She hated herself for what she planned to do, but it was a called for after all the events she has had to deal with this week, especially after seeing just how little Yukiko could eat. She stayed strong for Yukiko... But when Yukiko wasn't around, she could break down.

Chie slipped into the visitor's bathroom, locking the door behind her. She got down on her knees before moving to sit Indian style. She pulled her bag close and stuck her hand inside. She dug through it, under her abundance of books, until her fingers brushed against foreign plastic. She grabbed it and pulled it out, revealing it to be a ziplock bag, with a few medical supplies and the one thing she was craving-a razor.

Chie felt ashamed over the fact that she was happy to see the blade again even though she hadn't used it in nearly two weeks before this. She bit her lip and laid the bag down, before taking off her tennis bracelets. Underneath the bracelets were scars all clustered in that area. Chie then reached into the bag and took the cold steel into her hands. She was already beginning to feel that nauseating thought that she was planning to hurt herself again. But there really was no use. She couldn't quit this.

She put the blade to her scarred wrist and struck it across in a way similar to striking a match on a match box. The wound immediately turned red and began to bleed. Without any consideration at all, she echoed it on the opposing wrist.

Her chest began to twist in pain as she slit her wrists repeatedly with no consideration to what anyone else might think. All she knew was that she needed self mutilation to just handle life. She had decided nearly a year ago that others didn't matter, this was her cope. No one could take away her only form of coping.

Chie let in a few erratic breaths, before looking down at the mess she had made. The thin blade was laying on the tile floor, covering in smudged bloody finger prints, blood circling it. There was blood all over the floor and covering her arms. Chie didn't normally cut this deep, but even that didn't feel like enough to her. She had been so lost in her own thought that the moment of bliss she obtained from self injury was tainted.

She took in a sharp breath before reaching for the reflective cold blade with shaky hands. She scratched at the floor a bit as she struggled to pick the blade up. After struggling a bit, she got the blade in between her fingers. She gripped it tightly before rubbing her wrist roughly. Even though it was painful, rubbing her wrist was the only way she could think of right then to clear away the blood, so she could guess where she could cut again. She found a spot in between a few of the cuts she had already created, putting the sharp wedge onto her skin. She bit her lip and ran the blade across her flesh once more, much slower then before. This time she was doing it to calm her panicky thoughts.

Chie sat there on the locked bathroom floor for a while while she attempted to gather herself. She had thrown her blade in frustration after cutting too deep, causing a bit more bleeding then she had anticipated. Now she was staring at the deep slices that were decorating her wrists. She was almost one hundred percent certain that she wasn't going to be able to cover the wounds with her tennis bracelets, like she had originally planned. Besides that, one of the deepest cuts was at least two centimetres wide, which was something she couldn't stop the bleeding of with toilet paper.

After a few moments of Chie staring at the blood covered floor, she forced herself to get up and clean the mess she created. Her hands were shaking so much she could barely get paper towels, much less clean.

Chie took in a shaken, unstable breath and almost started crying. She was at an all time low. Her friend was starving herself, and and she was doing nothing but locking herself in the hospital bathroom, chopping her arms to pieces. She didn't know what to do, but she knew that she needed to get her left arm checked out. Some of the cuts were so deep that Chie could see yellowish fatty tissue from the gaping wounds. She didn't want to ask for help though. She didn't want anyone to know about it.

Chie bit her lip and ignored her urge to get help, as she started cleaning up her mess. She cleaned quickly, disposing of the mess. She washed her blade and put it in a different zip lock bag, before shoving both zip lock bags into her school bag. She put on her light green jacket once the bad cuts weren't bleeding badly anymore. While it was still winter, she could get by just wearing her jacket all the time.

Chie looked around the bathroom, making sure it looked relatively clean. After verifying this, she unlocked the door and started back to Yukiko's room. She bit the inside of her check over and over, reminding herself that she needed to be happy for Yukiko. Right before walking into the hospital room, she slapped her checks lightly, smiling to herself. She nodded after a moment, deciding it was good enough.

She walked into the hospital room, grinning at Yukiko, "So how ya feeling?" Chie asked Yukiko, looking as dorky as ever.

Yukiko shook her head a small bit before answering her, "I don't even remember falling asleep." she said, with a bit of a nervous laugh afterwards. She smiled at Chie, trying to show a small bit of happiness.

Chie nodded a small bit, "I sat here for a minute, but then I decided to take a small walk around the campus." she said as she looked outside. Even though it didn't feel like it, it looked like it was about 7 pm, meaning Chie had been in the bathroom for more then an hour. She took in a small breath, before readjusting her aching arms. Her left hand was beginning to tingle, a symptom she was blatantly ignoring.

Yukiko watched Chie for a moment, before saying, "Don't you have homework?" she asked. It wasn't as if she was trying to get rid of her or anything, she just wanted to make sure Chie didn't shirk her responsibilities just to watch after her. Yukiko would be safe here in the hospital. They wouldn't let her do anything stupid, and she was pretty sure that Chie knew this.

Chie suddenly looked surprised, "Crap, I do. Totally harsh unfair English assignment. We have to conjugate forms. Then write a paragraph in English on those words. Ughh." Chie acted overly worked for a moment before smiling at Yukiko. "I guess I'll get going then. I'll come by again tomorrow around the same time!" she said, going to pick up her bag. Without remembering what arm was hurt more, she went for her bag with her left hand. She got the bag into her grip but as soon as she tried to lift it off the ground, her half numb hand let go of the bag and it fell onto the floor.

Yukiko looked suddenly surprised. Without really thinking about it she said, "Are you feeling okay, Chie?"

Chie nodded nervously. She turned to Yukiko, thus making her right hand the one to pick up her bag. "I'm fine, just tired is all." she said before going to the door. "Tomorrow." she stated before leaving the room without another word.

When Chie got into the hall, she bit her lip, Glancing down at her sleeve. When she picked up her bag, she felt the wound reopen. She really needed to get medical attention. But, in Inaba everything traveled fast. If she got stitches, everyone would know that she was hurting herself. She definitely didn't want that.

* * *

**Dear readers, **

**before any of your rant about me glamorising self injury, that is not what I am doing. People that tend to hurt themselves also tend to romanticise it. I'm trying to get as well into the mind of a self injurer as I possibly can. I am a recovering self injurer, but it's hard to think back to when I first started. I do remember thinking that it was the greatest. But trust me, it's not. It never will be the answer.**

**~Bri**


	7. Chapter 7

**Trigger Warning** I made this chapter when I was not in a good mood. It's very horrible and I do _**NOT**_ recommend anything in this chapter. I'm not trying to glamorise self injury, but as almost anyone that has self injured knows, when you are falling apart it _seems_ just that romantic and great. Trust me it's not though.

* * *

Chie had struggled the entire walk to her home, due to the random dizzy spells and exhaustion. She skipped dinner, lying to her parents and saying she ate with Yukiko at the hospital. She went straight to her room, before collapsing on her bed.

Chie laid there for a while before it was time to tend to her wounds. She got up and locked her door, before going to sit at the edge of her bed. She scooted a cardboard box out from underneath her bed. In the box was things that looked random but were important to Chie. She sifted through a bit of it, before coming across some peroxide and cotton balls. She laid them on the floor before starting the painful process of taking her jacket off. Thank goodness she was wearing the winter uniform for school as well, or else her jacket would've been bloodstained. It's easier to bleach a white shirt then it is a green jacket.

She took a minute to also unbutton and remove the uniform blouse she was required to wear. Even though she was now left there in her bra, she didn't care. This is what she had to do.

She took the cotton balls and soaked a few of them in peroxide. She then took one of those cotton balls and squeezed it right over the deepest cut on her left arm. She, without even batting an eye, watched as it bubbled up and cleared out the infection. She eventually dried it off and repeated the process a few times, with the deeper cuts. She hated that she let it get this bad, but she couldn't cope any other way. Nothing gave her the same release.

She started thumbing through the box again after cleaning her wounds. She thumbed through it until she found cheap fishing wire and a needle. She put them on the floor before padding through the box again until she found a small bottle of alcohol.

After getting all of theses things out of the box, she proceeded to disinfect the needle and fishing wire. She let them both dry before grabbing some random T-shirt and putting it in her mouth.

She bit down as hard as she could on the T-shirt as she put the needle up to the skin near the 2 centimetre cut. She put the needle through the skin, biting even harder onto the T-shirt. She slowly began to stitch up the wound. She but down on the T-shirt over and over again, trying to fight back screams and tears. She would get herself small breaks between every link, just so she wouldn't pass out. She had caused the wound to bleed again, but it would be better once the stitches were complete.

It took her about 30 minutes to stitch up all of the deeper wounds that she had created. When she finally finished the stitches, she took the T-shirt out of her mouth, before curling up, holding her arm. She started crying and mentally begging for help. She hated all that she did to her body. She hated how she treated herself. She absolutely hated that this was something that she couldn't ask for help on. She knew she had to be strong for Yukiko and if that meant stitching up her own wounds to keep from upsetting her, she was willing to do it.

* * *

Yukiko had fallen asleep at some point and was surprised when she woke up to breakfast and medications. Normally she would have woken up before breakfast call, which was at 9 am. She took in a few breaths before looking at the food as of it were hell. She turned to the nurse and asked, "Can I have water instead of milk?" she asked in a groggy voice.

The nurse shook her head, "I'm sorry. The on site dietitian insists that you drink milk while you are here." she said in a smooth voice. She sat down a small cut with two different medications in it.

Yukiko looked at the cup curiously, "What are these?" she asked, studying the medicine that she had obviously never taken before.

"The capsule is a multi-vitamin and the small yellow pill is an anti-depressant." she said, without even thinking.

Yukiko looked at the medication then back at the nurse, "What happens if I refuse them?" she said, not just out of curiosity.

"Then we will give them to you by force." she said, once again with no effort. This woman seemed to deal with more patients like Yukiko then Yukiko possibly even could think about.

Yukiko nodded slowly, before taking the cup and carefully picking one of the pills. She slipped into her mouth and drank a small bit of the milk. She then did the same with the second one. She took two or three more drinks from the milk before staring down the food. She wasn't all that hungry and they brought her enough food to feed 4 of her for a week.

The nurse didn't give her much time to think before she said, "Open your mouth."

Yukiko looked confused but did it anyway. She had never been told to do something so strange before.

"Now lift up your tongue. Show me each side of your mouth as well."

Yukiko followed the orders, then looked at the nurse, questioningly. The nurse didn't even pretend to tell her why she needed her to do that. Yukiko didn't ask, though, because she was beginning to develop a small bit of dislike for her.

The nurse nodded and said, "I'll be back in thirty minutes to collect your tray and weigh you."

Yukiko suddenly looked much more unsettled. She didn't want to know her weight _after_ she had eaten something. She took in a deep breath to calm herself before looking at the food again. She picked out her favourite things from it, which were the eggs and toast. She decided to eat the toast first, because that is starch that will expand, thus making her say she's full and still being honest about it.

When the nurse came back, she had eaten about half of the toast and nothing else. She looked at the tray, shaking her head a little bit. "I'm full." she said in a soft voice.

The nurse sighed and said, "If you don't eat more then that, we'll have to put in a feeding tube." she threatened before taking up the tray. She sat down the portable scale she had carried with her and pointed to it.

Yukiko let out a nervous sigh before getting up from the hospital bed. She had to stand there for a moment due to light-headedness. She took a deep breath in before stepping towards the nurse and the scale. She got to it, but didn't really step on it.

"Please step on the scale." the nurse said to Yukiko, in that odd worker voice again.

Yukiko bit her lip but still stepped slowly on the scale. She stared at the number uncomfortably. Since she was not able to exercise after the salad yesterday, to the toast today, plus whatever they put in her IV, she had gained a pound and a half from admission.

She stepped off of the scale, not wanting to see the red numbers taunt her any longer. She let out a sigh and moved back to her bed. She really hated treatment. For once in her life she was at a weight that she liked, but than she had to be admitted and now they are making her fat again. She hated that she had to go through this. She wishes that she could just recover herself like she did before this. But she was deeper in the hole this time than she ever was before.

She let out a sigh as she watched the nurse. She really didn't want to go through with recovery, but she also didn't want a feeding tube. She knew if she needed one of those, the doctors would tell her parents. She didn't want that either. Right now, there was no good answer. For right now, she bit her lip and started slowly tearing away from the bread that she had been eating at the last half hour. She put the crumb sized pieces into her mouth slowly, her spidery thin fingers moving reluctantly. It was very obvious that she didn't want to have to eat much more then she already had. But on the other hand, she was weighing her options. Both hurt her, but one hurt her and her family worse. She had to eat, she decided.

The nurse scribbled down a few things before leaving the room without saying another word to Yukiko. She probably had some other patient to torture before getting off work from graveyard shift.

Yukiko continued to slowly eat at the bread as she decided to look around her room. She had slept most of yesterday, and the day before she had been unconscious the entire time. First, she went through the drawer at the bedside. It had her cellphone in it, along with a few other things that it seemed Chie brought. Nothing of true importance besides her cellphone was in there. She found the TV remote on the side table for guests. That side table was empty. There wasn't any other furniture in the room and all of the cabinets were locked. She thought that was a little suspicious but she didn't question it past that. She grabbed her phone and looked trough the abundance of texts and voicemails she had from various people. Some of the messages were from people she didn't even knew had her mailing address nor her number. She read through each of the get well messages and she responded to each and every one of them, thanking them for even caring about her enough to say such. Yosuke sent a heartfelt message about how this event wasn't going to stop his forever loving heart or something. Yukiko had started halfway through the message and couldn't keep a straight face look enough to read it before accidental deleting it. There were a few messages from Chie, all apologising for yesterday and asking her how she was feeling. Chie has suddenly gotten more attached since this happened. But it only makes sense. It's not like there wasn't an outside force helping her normal worry get amplified. But that was just how Chie was.

Yukiko curled up in the bed, trying to ignore the fact that she actually had assignments to do and began to fall asleep. She didn't really try to fight it like she normally did, because today she had nothing to do until about 7 hours from then. Some sleep wouldn't disrupt that.


End file.
